This week in my
household, we’ll be sitting down to take an assessment of our financial
life. We do this periodically throughout
the year in order to keep tabs on what we’re spending and what we’re saving,
but this time will be unique.

We will focus our
conversation on what we believe God is calling us to give to the ministry of
the church next year. I say it this way
on purpose.

After all, some of
our costs are set based on the cell phone carrier and plan that we have or how
we provide care for our daughter. But,
there are other things that we have control over like how often we go out to
eat or how much we spend on entertainment and pleasure.

Giving to the church
is not a set “bill.” It is not like a
cable bill. And it’s not like buying
season tickets to the Cardinals. For us,
giving part of our income away, and specifically giving money to the church has
to do with how we live our Christian faith and our relationship with God.

When we think about
our budget, the very first line on it is our tithe to the church. We pray about how much we will give. We calculate the tithe (10% of our income) and
consider if God is calling us to give even more than the tithe. We weigh what the other demands on our money
are. We consider how the way we spend,
save and give away our money tells us where our hearts are. And we consider where we want our hearts to
actually be—does it align with where they are?

We talk to one
another and then we covenant together to give a certain amount. At the end of this process, we’ll fill out a
pledge card because we believe it helps the church be a good steward by knowing
an estimate of income. I think I’ll even
try filling our pledge card out online this year!

I hope you will join
me in this process of reflection and submit your pledge online, mail it to the
church office or bring it with you to worship on Sunday, October 27!